What The Bigger Picture Is For
by Roselyne
Summary: Everyone is mortal... and everyone can be killed. The NEXUS is hit by tragedy when they receive an enigmatic phone text message.
1. A Dark Message

**Author's note:** This story will be a short one. **Six** chapters only.

The FRENCH version is already COMPLETE, but in order to avoid spoilers I'll publish it AFTER the English one. As English isn't my mother language, please, don't hesitate to tell me if you saw some mistakes and I'll correct them :)

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**"WHAT THE BIGGER PICTURE IS FOR"**

**Chapter 1 - a dark message**

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Wade passed his hand through his dark hair and realized that they were slightly wet with sweat. He sighed and closed his eyes, feeling the premise of a migraine assaulting him. He wasn't in a fight, yet. The evening was still young, and he was in the Nexus locker room with David Otunga, John Cena, and the two newbies Michael McGuilicutty and Husky Harris.

His actual stress had several factors. First, over the four Nexus with him, two of them probably wanted to skin him alive and the other two were too unaware of the global situation to be people he could count on in case of troubles. Secondly, he had a face-off tonight with Randy Orton and The Miz, and was trying to guess all the possible bad surprises this encounter might bring to him, and especially the many dark spots on the road which could play against him…

And thirdly, for someone as strict as he was about punctuality, the absence of Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel was almost throwing him into a fit of rage. The day before, Wade had heard that the two tag-team champions wanted to celebrate their victories through pubs and night-clubs. He had advised them against that idea, reminding them that usually after a heavy party night, they tended to be zombies in the morning and missed their flight. Heath had ensured him with a broad smile and a tap on his shoulder _- a gesture that the One Man Rock Band was the _only_ one who dared doing_ - that everything would be fine and that they would join them in time the next day.

Wade clenched his fists and sighed through his teeth. He turned towards the four remaining Nexuses, silently vowing to himself that - champions or not - when Slater and Gabriel would finally arrive, they would pay _dearly_. But just as he was about to start explaining his plans for the evening, he noticed that neither David Otunga nor John Cena were looking at him. They were rather focused on Otunga's cell phone.

"Whoa! You two!", Wade's voice clashed like thunder inside the locker room. "I hope I'm not making too much of a background noise, heh? Don't forget to warn me when I'm allowed to explain the plan, all right?"

David and John lifted their gazes towards him, but to his surprise they didn't looked unease, not even mocking. Those two hated each other with passion, yet they seemed to tolerate each other's presence whenever the topic was to drive _him_ crazy. But this time, their face-expression was one of shock, and their paleness automatically brought an acid jolt in Wade's stomach.

"Ok, what's wrong again?". A thought had crossed Wade's mind that perhaps Otunga had just received a text message from the board of directors, meaning doom for the Nexus. But he also knew that if it truly was the case, John Cena would be now dancing around the room with a broad smile on his face.

"We got this message… it was apparently sent during the night", Otunga told with a flat voice, holding out his cell-phone to Wade. "But sit down before you read …"

Wade took David's phone but remained stood and read the said message. Husky and Michael, sitting nearby, saw his face suddenly becoming ashen and his eyes widening. His mouth half-opened, their leader moved his eyes to Otunga and Cena, finally whispering: "… tell me it's not true…!".

"What's the matter?", Husky asked, his curiosity fully awaken now. Wade turned a lost gaze towards the two newbies - a gaze so alien on his face that they almost screamed in terror.

"Heath is dead…"

"**WHAT?**", the two newbies shouted at once. Wade blinked and turned towards Otunga.

"Are you sure this isn't a joke?"

"Well…", the former #2 from NXT frowned, thinking. "The message comes from Justin's phone. They left the arena together yesterday evening… So it seems pretty real to me…"

Wade softly fell on the bench behind him, and quickly dialed Justin's number. During some long seconds, David, John, Husky and Michael were as silent and still as statues, their whole attention focused on their leader, whose clear eyes seemed lost in a face desperately expressionless.

After a few seconds, Wade hung up. "I directly fall on Justin's voice mail".

"Perhaps he doesn't want to talk to anyone", John started, wincing just after he was done talking. In another situation, such a trivial observation would have guaranteed him a sarcastic gibe from the Brit. But this time, Wade neither reacted nor answered. He just lowered his head and stared again at the message Justin had sent.

_'Sorry. Won't reach the airport. Heath is dead'_

For the first time since he had encountered the Nexus a few months earlier, John Cena felt a sparkle of sympathy for Wade Barrett.

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**TO BE CONTINUED**

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What happened to Heath? Where is Justin? How will Wade and the Nexuses deal with the situation? Come back here next week for another chapter, and discover perhaps what the bigger picture is for.


	2. Empty bed and Memories

**Warning:** The FRENCH version is already COMPLETE, but in order to avoid spoilers I'll publish it AFTER the English one. As **English isn't my mother language**, please, don't hesitate to tell me if you saw some mistakes and I'll correct them :)

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**"WHAT THE BIGGER PICTURE IS FOR"**

**Chapter 2 - Empty bed and Memories**

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**"Justin, it's… It's Wade again… Listen, uh… Call me as soon as you get this message. Please…"**

Wade hung up and sighed, resisting the urge to smash the phone against the wall, knowing it wouldn't help at all. Quite the contrary. He passed a hand in his hair and stared for an unknown time at the ceiling above him. He finally turned his head on the left and looked at the digital watch. 02:37 am. Against his will, like iron needles attracted by a magnetic pole, his eyes shifted slightly on the right and rested once more on the bed against the wall.

The empty bed and untouched sheets which reminded him so cruelly of the absence of his annoying hyperactive roommate. So many nights he had wanted to strangle Heath when the latter insisted to watch cartoons until he felt asleep. So many nights he had wanted to choke him with his pillow in order to put an end to his bison-type of snoring. He had actually spent some nights, standing by Heath's bed, looking down with a pillow in his hands, contemplating that sweet possibility, also wondering how a journey in jail would affect his future career in WWE.

So many nights he had wondered why the hell had he accepted to share a room with this crazy ginger ninja at NXT, before remembering that the other rookies had left him no other choice. The red-haired was the only one left after they had all made their arrangements for the rooms. And Justin had made it quite clear to Heath why exactly they all wanted _him_ to share a room with Wade.

_"A southern boy obsessed with zombies who loves country music, and watches cartoons until dawn might give Wade the big brain aneurysm we are aaaaall hoping for"._

And the South-African had been almost right, proving to Wade that Albert Einstein's theory had been wrong: approaching the speed of light wasn't slowing time. Spending hours listening to Heath's rambling about the best methods to survive a zombies invasion while having Family Guy running on TV in the background, did.

Though he realized it now, Heath wasn't such a bad person to live with. He was floating in his own world most of the time, and was completely insensitive to Wade's mind games, but he was certainly much more agreeable to live with than Daniel Bryan had ever been. That man had never ceased once to complain about his pro, The Miz. Okay, Wade had to admit that _anybody_ would have complained about The Miz, but why did _he_ have to play the shrink with his roommate lying on his bed and pouring all the stress and bitterness out of his heart? Wade hadn't shown a tender or helping side to Daniel. Quite the contrary. He had even added a few pressures here and there, using as leverage some of Daniel's suspected unresolved father issues. Anybody who would nervously snap, would actually be one less competitor in front of him. So when Heath had moved in, the ginger had read a **"DIE, WADE! DIE!**" painted in red on the wall. Daniel's departure gift.

Wade had left that _piece of art_ visible, hoping it would attack Heath's mood and make him a bit vulnerable, easier to defeat on the ring afterwards. But the southerner just had an amused shrug and declared that they'd probably have to clean or paint over it, in order to avoid the additional fee when checking out at the end of the NXT tournament. This was when Wade had understood that getting rid of the One Man Rock Band would be way more difficult than he had expected.

And here he was now, regretting all these crazy moments, realizing that they were part of the best moments he had got while in NXT. He would never admit this out loud, of course, and certainly not to Heath, in fear of the One Man Rock Band's legendary friendly hugs and loud kisses on the cheek. For someone as few inclined to public demonstrations of affection as Wade was, Heath was a living nightmare.

But his abrupt and inexplicable departure made Wade realize that his annoying silly ginger had actually been quite close to the definition of a friend. Even, of his best friend. He forcefully closed his eyes in order not to see the empty bed in front of him, good and happy memories playing in his mind, Wade realized that the old adage was true.

You always realize what you had, once you lost it.

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**TO BE CONTINUED**

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_Why is Justin's phone still off? What exactly happened to Heath? Could it mark the end of the Nexus? Come back at next chapter to find out more._


	3. Voices In My Head

**Warning:** The FRENCH version is already COMPLETE, but in order to avoid spoilers I'll publish it AFTER the English one. As **English isn't my mother language**, please, don't hesitate to tell me if you saw some mistakes and I'll correct them :)

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**"WHAT THE BIGGER PICTURE IS FOR"**

**Chapter 3 - Voices in my head …**

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Wade hung up again after another message on Justin's voicemail. The South-African's phone was still off and the Nexus leader was starting to worry for BOTH of them now. He pressed his hands on his temples, trying to erase the migraine he could feel approaching. He wasn't in total panic. Not yet. But given time, he would.

No news from Justin, but also no news from the WWE management. Shortly after the Nexus had received the phone text message, he had walked to McMahon's office, to warn them, hoping they already knew and more info about the incident or whatever had happened to the One Man Rock Band. The big boss' shocked expression had unfortunately revealed Wade that he was actually the first bearer of bad news. The following minutes had seemed to Wade like a blur in an ugly greenish light. He had heard Vince's voice on the phone with some people from the board of directors, but hadn't been able to recognize the words. Yet, Vince's face expression during all those phone calls had been enough for Wade to know that the WWE direction was facing the situation differently than the Nexus, or even the rest of the roster.

For the board of directors, Heath was just an employee. An employee they had been forced to engage with six other totally unknown wrestlers, following Wade's coup d'état in June. Even if Heath had a talent for quickly becoming friends with people wherever he would go, Wade was sure that the WWE management was paying attention more to the administrative hell rather than to the One Man Rock Band's human value. With absolutely no news about Heath, what had happened to him, or where he was, they were probably wondering if they had to contact his family, and also what would they announce…

Wade had asked Vince McMahon to be warned as soon as they would get any information, even if it was in the middle of the night. He looked at the digital watch and read 03:17. He wondered if McMahon was alseep. Probably. Was there still someone in the communication team awake and investigating about Heath and Justin's whereabouts? Perhaps. Was that person aware that Wade had to be warned in case of news? He was starting to have serious doubts.

Wade was next-of-kin to neither Justin nor Heath. WWE management had no obligation to give him any personal info regarding other employees. And with the excellent communication he had observed between the teams recently, Wade was growing more and more persuaded that they had found something, but didn't bother calling him.

He grabbed his cell-phone and dialed another number. He wasn't sure that the man would be glad to be woken up in the middle of the night, but he had to try anything. Yet, he felt somehow relieved when he arrived directly on his voice mail. Perhaps the man was already on the phone with someone else, and would call him back afterwards. Wade couldn't imagine that man shutting his phone off during the night. Especially in the current situation.

"Mister Laurinaitis", Wade started after the beep, "this is Wade Barrett. I'm calling you regarding Justin Gabriel's and Heath Slater's situations. Please can you call me back as soon as you have news? I'm not going to sleep anyway… Thanks".

He hung up and stared at the phone for awhile, as if he could make it ring with the sole force of his thought. A mosquito found him, and seemed determined to have his high tea off him. A mosquito whirling around his head, and thoughts like mosquitoes inside his head. Those he couldn't wave off. Good memories from his time with Heath, but also regrets of his many unnecessary hurting words towards the ginger… and so many encouragement words he could have said, but never did.

He slapped his left cheek and was a bit disgusted when he felt the squashed mosquito against his skin. But as he was standing to go clean his face in the bathroom, he stopped when he saw the time on the night watch. 03:52. He really had lost track of time! A blackout? Or had he dozed off? He didn't know for sure. It was as if he had fallen into a strange kind of trance.

Sometimes he had the feeling he could hear Heath's voice, joking or trying to reassure him. If only he could close his eyes, and open them on a new day, only to realize that this had just been a bad dream, he swore to himself that he would be more tolerant to his hyperactive ginger. For a week, at least.

He reached the bathroom to clean his face, and clear his mind. He suspected that he was still in a shock state, so unreal the situation seemed. But emotions were reaching the core of his soul. Anger, he was trying his best to stay calm while all he really wanted was to smash everything his hands could fall upon. Panic - but not for him, a totally new kind of feeling. And as he passed water on his face, sadness.

_'What on Earth happened to you, crazy ginger…?'_

He didn't know if things would be easier if he knew what had befallen on his comrade, but at least, he would know. It would perhaps shut down the voices in his head. These voices of the past continued to twirl in his mind, Heath's voice for most of them. With those memories came the realization that his ginger friend hadn't been as dumb as he always claimed. He could now remember pearls of wisdom he had preferred to ignore back then.

He sighed and looked at his reflection in the mirror. On his face was clearly written his severe lack of sleep and actual stress. Wade was not a smoker, but he felt like he desperately needed a cigarette now.

He decided to go take a walk outside. Anything to take his mind away. Pacing back and forth in his room like a lion in cage wouldn't help, and wouldn't make Justin, Laurinaitis, McMahon or anybody from WWE call him any faster.

He took his grey shirt and put it on, getting the buttons wrong on the first try so that one tailed hung down below the other. He rebuttoned it, looking at the bed against the wall. There was something horribly sad about that empty bed with untouched sheets. The sign that all his former wishes to get rid of his annoying roommate had finally become true… and Wade understood the old adage: "Beware what you wish for".

… 'cause it might come true…

…and usually not the way you wanted it.

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**TO BE CONTINUED**

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_Will Wade find some peace outside, or will he have another blackout? Will he get a call from WWE management, or even Justin? Come back at next chapter to find out more._

_P.S.: Thank you all for your reviews :) Knowing that people like what I do, motivates me to write more ;-) _


	4. Pearls of Wisdom

**Warning:** The FRENCH version is already COMPLETE, but in order to avoid spoilers I'll publish it AFTER the English one. As **English isn't my mother language**, please, don't hesitate to tell me if you saw some mistakes and I'll correct them :)

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**"WHAT THE BIGGER PICTURE IS FOR"**

**Chapter 4 - Pearls of Wisdom …**

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After a short walk outside of the hotel, Wade came back, without the peace of mind he had hoped for. Once inside he walked towards the mini-bar, opened 24/7 for the red-eyes travellers as well as those who'd have to hit on the road early and wanted to eat something first. Wade being an insomniac, he was used to haunt this kind of places. He hadn't slept well during the past weeks, insomnia striking mercilessly, but tonight his perception of his surrounding seemed a bit blurred and the sounds were like echoes of echoes. Memories mixing with real sounds in a surreal concert, making voices of the past seem so realistic that he could swear that by his side was walking-

His train of thought was interrupted as he spotted two other people from the WWE in the mini-bar. Two people who obviously had problem finding some sleep. To no surprise, after all. John Cena and Husky Harris were sitting by the bar, an empty seat left cautiously between them as a neutral zone between two countries at war. John was holding a cup of coffee in his hands, and a huge untouched sandwich was lying in a plate in front of Husky. The latter glimpsed Wade walking towards them.

"You can't sleep too, right?"

"I don't feel right", the Nexus leader answered, frowning.

"I thought that if I ate something", Husky started as if to justify his presence with Cena, "the empty feeling would pass and I would be able to sleep better, but I can't even bite in it". _This_ was something unusual from the ogre of their group.

"Even if I didn't know him very well", Cena started, "I must say, it is a shock". Wade looked carefully John's face, seeking for mockery or hypocrisy, but he only found pure truth. He inadvertently pinched his lips together, realizing that, had Heath gotten more time, he would have managed to pierce through Cena's armor and would have created a real friendship bond with him.

Wade sat in between them, both mediator and leader. "Well, maybe you'll think I'm good for a straight-jacket and a padded-wall room, but I've got the feeling that he's talking to me". He half-expected an uneasy silence, or mocking chuckles, but he only felt Husky's hand patting his back.

"No, don't worry. I've got the same feeling…"

"Not me ", Cena answered simply with no expression in his voice. No mockery, at least.

"So, at the beginning, I thought it was just a dream", Wade went on for the other two nexuses, "but no. Even awake, sitting on my bed, or walking outside, I hear stuffs".

This was followed by a heavy silence before John frowned and half-turned towards him. "What kind of stuffs?".

"I don't know exactly", Wade answered. "Like advices he would give me".

"Same for me", Husky added.

"What kind of advices?", Cena asked again, his gaze resting on Husky. He was starting to suspect the latter to just borrow the exact path their affected leader was taking in order to be in his good books later. Let alone the idea of _Heath_ showing any kind of wisdom. The memory Cena had of Heath was rather of someone joyful, impulsive, hyperactive, running his mouth without thinking, party addicted,… but _wise_ enough to give advices?

"Well…", Husky started, showing the area around, "he's the one who told me to come here, for example, and to order a sandwich". Cena brought his attention back to Wade as the Nexus leader was raising his eyebrows before turning his gaze towards him.

"Well, as for me, it's a bit better than that". Wade paused a little before going on. "It's as if he was encouraging me to rethink some of our strategies, you see?". He turned his gaze in front of him, lost in the distance. "The championship, the Bigger Picture, everything… as if I had made a _mistake_ somewhere…".

Facing the silence from his comrades, Wade went on: " 'You must always correct or alter your plans. Never rest on your past achievements', this is the kind of things Heath tells me".

"He's _really_ telling you that?", Cena frowned, puzzled. Not exactly due to the fact his forced-leader was hearing voices in his head just like Randy Orton, but mostly due to the complexity of the sentence.

"Well, I removed all the _'Woooh!' _and all the _'naw mean'_, but you get the idea", Wade answered with a thin smile as if he had read his mind. He became very serious again and sighed. "It's just how I feel it. It's as if Heath was now communicating with me not with words, but with emotions".

"Anyway, Heath is there… with us…", Husky spoke again, his eyes towards the ceiling and a soft dreamy smile on his lips. "And he's talking to us…".

John took a sip of his coffee. "Well, all I know is that he's not talking to me". He paused, then went on: "… Maybe because he thinks I'll call him Wendy and tell him to fuck off ".

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**TO BE CONTINUED**

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Has Wade really lost it, or is Heath's ghost walking by his side? Stay tuned on next chapter to find out more! ;-)

WWE-Slash-Luvee, Failed to De-anon, CodyRexBeth: thank you for your reviews :) Hope you still like the story so far ^_^


	5. Holy Fire

Author's note: The following chapter is inspired from true facts. Those familiar with FCW will perhaps have a (bitter) smile…

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**"WHAT THE BIGGER PICTURE IS FOR"**

**Chapter 5 - Holy Fire**

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Wade was in David Otunga's room. Both were leaning against the balcony, watching the first lights of the approaching dawn in complete silence, sometimes drinking from their respective bottles. They hadn't voiced a word for the past fifteen minutes, each lost in his own thoughts. Wade side-looked at David, wondering what kind of memories the Hollywood boy would remember about Heath. The first time he had met the ginger was at the NXT tournament a few months earlier. He hadn't known Heath when he was the light of FCW, when everybody were looking up at him, wanted to be like him, or fight by his side.

Wade brought his gaze back in front of him. He had arrived in FCW with his dark personality and sometimes rough behavior. He had always believed that looking strong and merciless, and imposing fear on people, were the only way to make it through this business.

So when he had made his first steps in FCW, the school brand of WWE, the last step before his ultimate goal, he had expected the top dogs to be imposing and somehow scary figures. He would never forget his first day.

After signing his developmental contract, he had followed John Laurinaitis to the FCW building where the show was being held. They had arrived towards the end of the show, during the main event, but John Laurinaitis had told him to wait and take a seat backstage, while their number one, a guy named Heath Slater, was disputing the main-event match.

Wade had smirked. Whoever was their number one, he'd try to reach him, and overthrow him. He had tried to imagine that Number One guy, from the stature, look and attitude of all the other wrestlers he would see passing by. His first estimation was that _'Heath Slater'_ probably from 6 feet 5 inches to 7 feet tall, broad shoulders, squared jaw, hair probably shaved or with a Mohawk to look more bad-ass, full of scary tattoos, thick eyebrows, sun tan, and most likely over 300 lbs.

After he heard the match ending with the announcement of Slater's victory, he saw the loser passing through the black curtains, and his brute look made Wade confident about his guess about Heath.

So, he almost choked with surprise when the black curtains parted a few moments later, revealing a smaller young man, with pale skin, long silky red hair cascading almost to his elbows, and a face almost girly, tilted slightly on his right as soft and questioning brown eyes were resting on him.

Wade had blinked. Was this a joke? This couldn't be THE Heath Slater everyone was talking about. This was probably the guy who had accompanied the other wrestler to the ring, a manager or a lackey of some sort. And his sweat covered skin and rapid breathing could only mean that he had taken a severe beating by the hands of that Slater guy. Wade's eyes shifted to the curtains behind the strange man in front of him, expecting Slater to appear any seconds from now.

"So you must be the new guy, heh?", the red-haired started with a pitch lower than what Wade would have expected, and a strong accent he couldn't place. Wade blinked, his train of thoughts interrupted, and brought back his attention to the youth. "John Laurinaitis told me about your coming".

Wade blinked again. The man hadn't said "John Laurinaitis told _us_", but "told _me"._ Before he could proceed any other thought, the youth was reducing the distance between them, his hand offered for a handshake.

"I'm Heath Slater".

Everything that he might have told afterwards was drown for Wade as realization hit him like a bulldozer. So much for his guess. Like in a trance he saw himself lifting his own hand and engulfing Slater's. Surprisingly, the grip the red-haired returned was strong, and their handshake was firm.

"I'm… Wade Barrett", he said hesitantly, trying to gather his thoughts as he stood on his feet, still shaking Slater's hand.

"Well, Wade Barrett", Heath said with a genuine smile. "Welcome in the FCW family".

Wade smiled back, letting go of Heath's hand. A broad and amused smile that didn't actually contain any friendly intension. Santa Claus - that old bastard - had finally read his letters. If THIS was really their number one, himself would quickly make his way to the top! He was almost disappointed by the lack of challenge.

He had quickly changed his mind when he had observed Heath's next match a week later. First, his appearance was giving a false idea. At first sight, his long hair and soft features would create the automatic illusion that he was of a weak stature, and seeing him appearing with his long leather back coat for his entrance was increasing the idea of a lean morphology.

But when Heath removed his coat, tossing it behind him and preparing himself for the upcoming match, Wade saw that the youth was _far_ from being frail. Oh, he wasn't a Mister Universe, body-building champion as he had seen before - those people usually looked good, yet were never able to truly fight - but he had broad shoulders and strong arms and abs. Wade felt himself being a bit fatty in comparison. And the surprise didn't stop there.

Wade had made a quick estimation of Heath's weight and body mass from what he was seeing. He was trying to determine some flaws in what he assumed would be his opponent sooner or later, and had come to the conclusion that one cannot move quickly with such a strong-built body. Something he would use to his advantage when his time would come.

But once again, Heath had exploded all his expectations. Not only was the youth strong built, but he was also moving with a speed Wade had only seen in lean high-flyers. And speaking of high-flyer, he saw Slater make a few acrobatic moves that almost defied the law of gravity. And when it came to defend himself, Heath was dodging with such a speed that Wade was almost wondering if he could be reading the mind of his opponent and predicting every moves. He was apparently totally aware of his opponent's body language. And when Wade saw Heath using some boxing techniques himself had learned in his dark past as bare-knuckled fighter, he automatically understood that his way to the top of FCW would take a "bit" longer than expected.

Heath Slater was not a "weak girly wrestler"; he was even probably using voluntary his appearance to deceive his opponents and lower their guard. He was a strong, fast, clever, agile opponent who knew how to get the sympathy of the crowd and _feed_ from their support. And the following weeks would show Wade that Heath had a different strategy and still plenty of moves for each opponent he would get in front of him, and he would even sometimes assimilate his opponents techniques.

Heath Slater wasn't FCW Number One for nothing, actually. He was a perfect weapon that would probably take over the WWE if given the occasion. Wade lifted his gaze on a giant WWE poster behind a celebrating Heath. Yeah, he could even one day defeat WWE's golden boy John Cena, given time.

Wade smiled without realizing. Now, reaching Slater's level was a valid purpose that would push him to evolve and improve.

"It looks like someone has a man-crush", a voice with a heavy - yet familiar - accent said next to him. Wade blinked, frowned, then got a grip on the chair before him with the purpose of smashing it in the face of whoever had voiced out that blasphemy, when he recognized Drew McIntyre, his long time buddy from United Kingdom. He thus remembered that Drew had joined FCW a bit before him.

"Don't worry, mate!", Drew said half-laughing (even if he had probably seen his life flashing before his eyes), "he makes that effect on everyone", the Scottish went on, tilting his head towards Heath. "He has the type of shining personality which makes everyone wanting to gravitate around him. You'll get used to it. Wanna grab some Stella's after the show?".

And Drew had been right about Heath personality. As fierce as he could be in a match, he had always a kind or helping word for a colleague in difficulty, or would take the time to carefully prepare a move during the training session, would even push people to go beyond their limits and try new techniques. Wade never really got the occasion to actually _train_ with Heath for a match, but he could observe that from others.

And even after a hard day of training, Heath would always be full of energy, ready to go outside and have fun, quickly becoming the life of the party.

Wade had almost be tempted to join him in the "Light", changing his attitude, becoming more sociable, friendlier with the public. But it was quite difficult since his team with Drew McIntyre was supposed to represent the darkest and wildest pit of Europe.

Then Wade had been injured and put aside from the ring for several months. Pacing alone in his two-room flat like a lion in a cage, he had started seeing everything in pitch black, and his admiration for Slater had started to turn into anger and jealousy. He would be back, and he would _destroy_ the number one and show _everyone_ what he truly was capable of.

So when he had been allowed back in FCW, but on the commentary booth, waiting to be completely healed before returning in the ring, he had tried another approach, boosting Heath Slater's ego through his comments, implying that Heath really was Heavyweight champion material, and that it was a _shame_ he was most of the time walking around without a belt. He had also pointed on his charisma, saying that any fangirl who wanted to have a date with him would have to make a mile-long bee-line with all the other fangirls. He knew Heath was usually watching the tapes from the shows, in order to observe and learn from mistakes. And so, all of his words progressively sunk in, and little by little, Heath started to develop a darker side and a slightly mocking and greedy personality. Yet, it was still very light, almost imperceptible for untrained eyes.

Then Heath got injured and was taken away from the ring for a few months. And when he was back, Wade could _feel_ the change, the planted seed had grown. His arrogance was starting to overshadow his playful personality, and his increasing ego was reducing his natural connection with the fans. By that time, the crowd was still with him, probably holding on their old memories of him, hoping his actual attitude was just an aftermath of his long absence and that _their _Heath would soon be back.

But when a newcomer from South Africa - Justin Gabriel - arrived in FCW, he wasn't welcomed with a handshake and a smile, like Wade had been, but with a rather brutal exchange of blows in the middle of the ring. By that time, the crowd was still with Heath. But things would change. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, but surely.

Then Heath became the Heavyweight champion. The crowd was happy for him, yet Wade had noticed - with a smile - that they had been slightly less supportive than expected during the whole triple thread match. But Heath didn't see it. His entire focus was on the golden belt. He stood proudly on the ropes, the Heavyweight belt above his head, bragging about it, and forgot to salute and thank his fans.

A few boos started to appear here and there, but Heath didn't pay attention to them. The Heavyweight champion belt was his, and helped him prove to everyone that he truly was FCW number one. It was like he had completely forgotten that earlier, he had never needed the belt to be the number one for everyone. In reality, he didn't need the belt at all, but in his mind, he wrongly felt that he was nothing without it. With the belt, he was the champion. With the belt, he truly was the number one. The crowd couldn't hate him if he had the belt, could they? So he didn't hear the growing anger from the fans. But Wade did. And smiled.

And when Heath lost his Heavyweight title to Justin in a long two out of three falls 30 minutes long match, he realized then that the crowd was with the South African, and no longer by his side. And he thought it was only because he didn't have the belt anymore.

He snapped and turned his back on them.

And the next week, when the FCW president Steve Keirn himself, unveiling to everyone the new FCW giant poster, showing Justin with _his_ golden belt, Heath realized that he had been the number one for months, showing his best, helping everyone, even sacrificing his occasion to join WWE in order to stay one more year in FCW and help his comrades progressing… and holding the Heavyweight title for _weeks…_ and he never got that tribute. That South-African kid had just arrived, and was receiving honors that Heath had never been given, even after years of good services.

Apparently just because he didn't have the belt, he didn't exist anymore. People were turning their back on him, forgetting all he had done for them. His anger and rage burnt the remaining good traces in him…

And Wade was ready to welcome him in the dark side with open arms.

But then something happened which modified his plans. They were both called with 6 others, on a new reality TV wrestling show called NXT, where they would have to compete on various levels, strength, agility, intelligence, … and the winner would get a guaranteed contract with WWE and a match of his choice for a main title.

The dream.

Heath and Wade started on NXT, with respective mentors. Wade lost whatever control he ever had over Heath, and in a new place with new people, and a new look with shorter hair, Slater tried to return to his former self. But the damage had been done. If he was again always smiling, hyperactive, full of energy and getting the crowd by his side, his light was almost gone. To Wade, the Heath he had met two years ago was gone. This was now almost a smiling child, desperately hoping that mommy and daddy will still love him. Actually, the crowd liked him and supported him, but not with the same intensity as before.

Heath had been eliminated two weeks before the end, and Wade had won the competition. So when Wade had walked to Heath with his Nexus plans in mind, he had seen a man who was a shell of his former self. The man who could have once taken over the WWE and overthrown John Cena was gone. Their roles had been reversed. Wade had extended his hand towards a sitting Heath, shaking the youth's hand as he was standing on his feet.

"Well, Heath Slater… Welcome to the NEXUS".

Wade brought his attention back on the approaching dawn, the glow in the horizon becoming brighter and brighter, and he bit his lower lip with guilt. He still didn't know what had happened to Heath the night before, but he felt that he had - somehow - a part of responsibility in his death.

He had turned a creature of light into a symbol of hatred for many. If someone had killed Heath because of his "annoying personality", or even his acquaintance with the Nexus, Wade would never forgive himself.

He let his mind wandered freely again, not resisting against the flow of memories, phrases, voices, too tired to check if those voices were actual memories, or just… _ideas…_ Heath had once been a creature of light. They _had_ to continue. For him.

"We're going to rethink the whole thing, David". Wade finally broke the silence.

David blinked, taken out of his own train of thoughts, and turned toward his leader: "What do you mean?"

"I think we lost some of our initial energy and motivation these past weeks", Wade went on. "The Bigger Picture, there are days when this mission looks so complex and impossible to realize…"

"What do you intend to do?", David's voice was lower than usual, and his words were coming slowly. The exhaustion from the stress and the lack of sleep was probably gaining him.

"Heath is talking to me", Wade started. In front of Otunga's empty gaze, he went on: "Believe me or not, it's like that". To his relief, David was perhaps too tired to mock him, so he went on: "if _he_ managed to give me back the holy fire, I should be able to transmit it to the other Nexuses".

David brought his gaze back to the horizon, with the dawn almost there. "What if we overestimated ourselves? What if we couldn't accomplish the quest we received?".

Wade shook his head. "No, I know we are capable of completing this mission". His voice was stronger, with renewed energy. David turned his eyes to him, curious.

"And how can you be so sure?"

Wade looked back at David with clear eyes, quietly. Then as the first rays of sun pierced the horizon and lit his face, the Nexus leader smiled softly.

"Because Heath is telling me".

**·..·**

**·..·..· -•(-•-•-)•-..·..·**

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**·..·..· -•(-•-•-)•-..·..·**

**·..·**

The next chapter will be the conclusion to this story, and **what happened to Heath** will be finally revealed. I hope this chapter helped some of you discover how he was before the Nexus.

Don't hesitate to share your thoughts, I'm really interested into discovering what are your feelings and expectations after this chapter… :)


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